If you’ve ever cooked, baked or had tea, chances are you’ve come into contact with either fresh or dried herbs. These plants add flavor, spice and texture to nearly everything we eat. But what makes herbs organic? Just like other aspects of organic gardening, organic herbs are grown in a specific, natural manner, and always without herbicides or pesticides. Successful organic herbs start with good, rich soil that is further enhanced with organic compost. Natural organic herbs can benefit both your garden and your kitchen by maintaining the health of the produce you grow and simultaneously adding flavor to the dishes you cook. You can also use natural organic herbs to make your own nonculinary creations such as soaps and aromatherapy products, teas, fragrant sachets and wreaths.

Why go organic?Growing your own organic herbs, or purchasing certified organic herbs, is a measure of your dedication to the environment. Organically grown goods help prevent soil erosion. By not using synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, no energy is wasted producing these poisons, and their inherent carcinogens are not spread into our water systems and into the food we eat. Supporting organic herbs helps the organic farming industry grow and flourish. And if you already eat organically grown food, switching to organic herbs reduces the exposure you and your family get to pesticides and chemicals from conventionally grown plants even further.

Getting started

It’s easy to get started with an organic herb garden. Most herbs require a good amount of sunlight. Check the sun requirements of the seeds, seedlings or starter plants you buy and pick out a location in your garden that receives six hours of sun each day. The organic process begins with good, rich organic soil. You may already have nutrient-rich soil in your back yard; if you don’t, your local home-and-garden store will have organic soil for you to buy. Next, you’ll need fertilizer to enrich the soil you have. Organic gardens don’t use synthetic fertilizer, but organic compost works just as well as anything you can purchase in stores.

Making your own compost is easy, and it’s a great way to dispose of vegetable peels, coffee grounds and other organic material. Build a wooden slatted box in your back yard and simply add anything organic you can find—grass clippings, garden trimmings, peels, fruit cores and corn husks. You can accelerate the decomposition of your compost pile by introducing earthworms to the pile, adding a bit of water and tossing its contents occasionally.

Organic Herbs Benefit Organic GardensSince organic gardens cannot use any type of commercial pesticide, organic farmers and gardeners must still face the formidable challenge of fighting pests that feast on crops. Planting beneficial plants is a way to naturally discourage harmful insects from your garden and encourage biological diversity. Some beneficial herbs have foliage or a specific odor that naturally repels pests. Other herbs help keep a garden healthy by attracting insects that feast on harmful insects. When attracting beneficial insects, be sure to add a small birdbath with small gravel islands so these insects can drink water without drowning.

In addition to selecting herbs you cook with, pick herbs that will uniquely benefit your garden’s plants. This means knowing what type of pests feast on the plants you have in your garden.

Once you’ve identified your "prey," you can stock your garden with plants and herbs that will attract its predator. You can find an exhaustive listing of common garden pests—as well as their predators—at GardenGuides.com.

After you’ve identified your garden’s pests, you can select the herbs that will benefit it most by attracting beneficial insects. Some organic websites, like EarthEasy.com, recommend planting an insectary, or a separate area dedicated to plants that attract beneficial insects. An insectary can include as few as six or seven plants, but can expand to any size you like. Other gardeners simply integrate these plants into their existing garden or plant a border or insect-friendly plants.

There are dozens of different types of plants to plant in your insectary. Planting a variety of herbs will ensure that you attract the best range of predatory insects and therefore the more superior overall protection for your garden. Plants that grow close to the ground, such as mint, rosemary and thyme, provide cover for ground beetles. Ground beetles feast on ground-dwelling pests and are always considered good for a garden. Rosemary and basil effectively deter mosquitoes from a garden. Basil also repels flies. Planting marigold deters several types of beetles that are harmful to plants as well as nematodes. Marigold is also credited with repelling tomato hornworms. However, marigolds need to be established for a year before they will deter nematodes effectively. Fragrant lavender will ward off ticks and is thought to repel mice and moths as well.

Borage will ward off a host of insects as well as attract beneficial ones. Plants with small flowers like fennel, coriander and dill attract ladybugs—a gardener’s best friend—as well as tiny wasps that eat aphids, grubs and caterpillars. Nasturtium and chives are two other herbs that ward off aphids, either by their own devices or by attracting beneficial insects. Composite flowers and mints, including catnip, also attract hover flies, predatory wasps and robber flies. These insects feed on leafhoppers and caterpillars, both of which can wreak havoc on a garden.

A quick way to visually assess the health of your garden is to observe the number of flying insects in your garden—the more, the merrier. Until you can positively discern a beneficial insect from a pest, resist the urge to crush or squash any eggs, larvae or bugs you see crawling around. Most beneficial insects are quite prolific in their reproductive habits, and any eggs or larvae that belong to a garden pest will soon be devoured by the predatory insects you attract.

Organic Herbs for CookingAn extensive herb garden virtually ensures your summers will never include a last-minute run to the supermarket for an herb to finish a recipe. You can plant a wide range of herbs to add spice to your meals. Start with versatile, hardy herbs like basil, dill, oregano, cilantro, mint and parsley, which lend themselves to many different cuisines.

Indulge your gourmand side by planting chives, lemongrass, lemon verbena, chocolate mint and lavender. Many of these culinary herbs have an added benefit of encouraging beneficial insects to your garden.

Growing natural organic herbs is an excellent way to replace your current dried-herb collection with fresh herbs. Fresh herbs improve the flavor of nearly every type of food and can be used at every meal. You can also steep your organic herbs for tisanes or additions to tea or extract their oils or dry herbs to make aromatherapy and fragrant sachets for your home or to give as homemade gifts. Natural organic herbs also help attract beneficial insects to your garden, improving the quality of the fruit and vegetables you grow and the overall biodiversity of the grounds. By implementing organic herbs into your garden and lifestyle, you promote a healthier way of living for yourself and your family. And even on this small, personal scale, you help to support other organic farmers, farms and gardeners in their quest to grow high-quality produce and plants without harmful pesticides and chemicals.

How "Green" Are You?They say it's not easy being green, but we beg to differ. In this day and age, conservation is key. As the ozone layer whittles away, the water supply dries up and the environmental bleeding continues, many people are taking a stand and going green. Do you know what it takes to do your part? Take our quick environmental quiz and find out.